NPD BookScan looked at sales data for books that have been removed from shelves or publicly challenged, finding that media attention converts into sales spikes — though the absolute numbers range widely. “When a book finds itself at the top of a national news story because it has received a challenge, sales go up,” said Kristen McLean, books industry analyst for NPD. “But that doesn’t translate into an overall sales boost for other banned books. It’s the immediacy of the story, and viewers’ reaction to it, that drives increased sales. It is also likely that many consumers don’t know what […]
Book Bans
Virginia Politicians Seek Restraining Order Against B&N for Selling Two Books
The Virginia Beach Circuit Court issued preliminary orders finding “probable cause to believe” that two books — A COURT OF MIST AND FURY by Sarah J. Maas and GENDER QUEER by Maia Kobabe — are deemed “obscene for unrestricted viewing by minors” under Virginia state law. The authors or publishers have 21 days to respond to the allegations. The orders are the result of agitation by two local politicians: Attorney Tim Anderson, a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, petitioned the court on behalf of his client Tommy Altman, a candidate in the Republican congressional primary, Book Riot reported. Anderson […]
School and Library Book Bans Go Digital, Restricting Entire Collections
At least three counties have removed access to e-reading apps used by schools and libraries in a continued effort to restrict children’s access to books, NBC News reports. In Tennessee, Texas, and Florida, a few parents have objected to digital reading platforms, including OverDrive and Epic, aiming to restrict access to books on gender, race, and LGBTQ+ themes. The apps became even more widely used due to the pandemic and virtual schooling. These bans affect all users, not just individual students, and all titles — removing access to entire digital collections of books for the sake of restricting a few, […]
AAP Meeting Highlights Challenges to Books and Copyright
The AAP convened a virtual annual meeting on Monday, with current board chair (and ceo of HBG USA) Michael Pietsch and AAP president and ceo Maria Pallante reminding the audience of the organization’s current core values and reviewing the abundant challenges they are confronting. “As an industry, we must therefore be vigorously involved in the policy battles that threaten our industry,” Pallante said. “Big Tech” was mentioned multiple times in her remarks, along with “the radical, systematic infringements of the Silicon-valley based Internet Archive, a case we continue to litigate in New York, and the misguided but aggressive actions of […]
Follett Will “Not Proceed” With New Parent Control Tools For Destiny Software
Follett Learning announced on Friday afternoon that it will not proceed with plans to add tools to school library software Destiny enabling customers to comply with recent “parents’ rights bills” that have been introduced in several states. The decision follows criticism online from librarians, who expressed concern that tools allowing parental oversight of school library withdrawals would compromise student’s privacy. Britten Follett, ceo of content, and Paul Ilse, ceo of software, wrote in a statement on Friday: “We take very seriously the feedback we have received from librarians and industry partners regarding a potential parental control module for Destiny Library […]
Follett Letter Urging Librarians to “Come Together” Sparks Online Controversy
Further to yesterday’s story on the new tools Follett Learning is developing for its Destiny software to enable customers to comply with recent “parents’ rights bills,” the company posted a letter on LinkedIn from ceo of content Britten Follett explaining the company’s actions and inviting librarians to a live web chat on Monday, April 4, at 5pm ET. The letter was met with criticism from librarians online, who expressed concern that tools allowing parental oversight of school library withdrawals are unethical and will harm children. Follett writes that this is “an extremely difficult time in education” and the company is […]